“A client of mine [says] he rarely hears people complain [about oil pipelines] while wearing a burlap sack and riding a horse,” pipeline integrity consultant Andrew Kendrick noted while discussing the Refugio oil spill the other day, acknowledging the dominant role that petroleum plays in our day-to-day lives.
The spill beckons the question of how much risk could have been avoided through better use of technology in the construction of the failed Plains All American pipeline. After all, it was designed to feed California’s petroleum-hungry populace, which, according to the Western States Petroleum Association, burns through 43 million gallons of gas and 8 million gallons of diesel every single day just to fuel vehicles. About half the state’s petroleum is imported from foreign sources, including 14 percent from Saudi Arabia. Thirty-seven percent is produced in-state, and the balance comes from Alaska.
While assenting to such facts, Kendrick also described himself as an environmentalist and a surfer. He reconciles these two perspectives by running a business — that includes an office in Santa Barbara — with the goal of reducing leaks and accidents.